St Mary's - Letheringham

The parish worship of God has certainly gone on in Letheringham since the second half of the 11th century, for a church is mentioned in the Domesday book in 1086. How long the present church has been in parochial use is not certain for it is thought that it was preceded by one about a mile away which served the parish until its demolition some time in the 17th century.  No trace of this building has been found, but numerous skeletons were unearthed near Letheringham Mill and Letheringham Old Hall. 

The present church is the nave of the Church of a Priory founded about 1194 and dissolved in 1537. The fine western tower, with its diagonal buttresses, was added in the 14th century. The large western doorway is visible only to two thirds of its height, as it was silted up with rubble from the ruins of the Priory. The brick south porch is dated 1685. 

The east wall is late 18th century, although the three-light window is 14th century, believed to have come from the destroyed Chancel. The Holy Table dates from the 17th century and the altar rail is three-sided rather than stretching from the north to the south wall of the church. 

There are two brasses that survived the mid-18th century devastation, and these are now mounted on the walls. One is of Sir John Wingfield, Member of Parliament for Suffolk and Norfolk, who was knighted in 1389, died the same year and is buried in this church. 

The remains of a wall monument from the destroyed Chancel - this was a memorial to William Naunton and his wife Anne. The two are separately mounted on the walls at the west end of the nave. 

The pulpit is of simple late Georgian design, and the plain deal box pews are from the same period. 

In the south wall of the nave are two large 13th century windows, each of three lights, with plain intersecting bar tracery.